Sunday, November 20, 2005

The Hot Stove Heats Up

Newberg Report.com with a great job this morning on the trade talks ...

Let me haul off and reprint the whole thing and assume Jamey doesn't mind:



The Dallas Morning News has modified last night's story by Todd Wills and Evan Grant, characterizing a trade that would send Hank Blalock and John Danks to Florida for Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell no longer as one that will "likely be done by Monday," but instead as one that "could be completed as early as today" but that the Rangers are "wrestling with parting with Danks."

T.R. Sullivan writes in this morning's Fort Worth Star-Telegram that Texas is trying to find a way to consummate the deal without including Danks or Thomas Diamond, presenting a number of alternative scenarios, one of which involved Josh Rupe going instead. The Marlins apparently declined the offer. Sullivan acknowledges that Danks "appears to be the likely one to go" and that the deal "could be completed in the next couple of days," possibly to allow the Rangers to run Beckett through a physical.

But several Florida-based newspapers are reporting this morning that Texas is working on a deal with a third, unidentified team to acquire a pitcher to flip to the Marlins instead of Danks or Diamond. The Palm Beach Post speculates that the separate trade could be as simple as moving Adrian Gonzalez for a pitching prospect who is acceptable to the Marlins.

There is also the possibility, according to the Miami Herald, that Florida, which had planned to move outfielder Miguel Cabrera back to third base, could make Blalock its first baseman if Carlos Delgado is traded, or that the Marlins could even trade Blalock.

The Post adds that Texas and Florida have discussed scenarios that involve center fielder Juan Pierre.

Also, Newsday reports that the Yankees asked Texas about Alfonso Soriano -- with plans to move him to center field -- but were unwilling to trade Robinson Cano and/or Chien-Ming Wang. The Rangers are likely to sit tight with Soriano until Rafael Furcal rebuffs all but one team and signs.

Stay tuned.

Jamey

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

this is great news. i would hate to see blalock go, but to get beckett would be the aggressive move to acquire quality pitching that this club has never had the guts or ability to pull off with john hart as gm. like it's been said before, danks is no sure thing whereas a guy like beckett is, so if he is the piece that has to be added for the deal to be made, i say go for it. the rangers would have a legitimate ace to build the staff around. also, if they are going to deal soriano, they better hold out as long as they can, and get some good arms back from the yankees.

even if this deal doesn't go through, the fact that they are even having such serious discussions is a huge step in the right direction.

Anonymous said...

im with big smooth here, even if the whole thing has been made up, this "fake" deal would be better than anything hart did. i hate to see blalock go, but crap to get a pitcher you got to do it.

Anonymous said...

Dear Bob:

Yes, I mind.

Thank you. Jamey

Cap It said...

Jamey,
Do you NOT want more readership?

Just curious.

Anonymous said...

Whatever clown posted the comment above isn't Jamey Newberg.

Of course I don't mind if Bob posts my reports. I'm flattered that he'd think enough of them to do so.

Jamey

Anonymous said...

If the Rangers can get this deal done without Pierre, then it will be a godsend. Soriano's only value to the Rangers is to acquire another bat, not a pitcher. Soriano for a center fielder than can cover would go much farther than anything else you could get for him, plus the salary relief woul allow the Rangers to backload a deal for Matt Morris and get him in here. Kudos to Jon Daniels for not sitting back and falling in love with his assets. He might just end up with 2 top of the roation starters and a more balanced offense and defense....Not too bad youngin....